Contemporary paintings shown at CLU

Rolland Gallery exhibit features Nerdrum, Hess

"Louis Takes Flight" by F. Scott Hess is one of the paintings featured in the Rolland Gallery exhibit.

(THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. – Feb. 3, 2014) The third in a series of exhibits of representational art from 1900 until today opens Thursday, Feb. 20, in the William Rolland Gallery of Fine Art at California Lutheran University.

An opening reception for “Resonating Images III,” which features works of contemporary artists in multiple styles, will be held from 6 to 8 p.m. Saturday, March 1. A second reception will be held from 5:10 to 6 p.m. Monday, March 3, in conjunction with The Representational Art Conference, which is being presented by CLU. The exhibit will continue through April 17.

Nerdrum, a panelist at TRAC, is a Norwegian regarded by many as one of the greatest living representational painters. He is known for his allegorical images of refugees adrift in an inhospitable Icelandic landscape.

Hess, who will present a paper at TRAC, has received National Endowment for the Arts and Getty Museum fellowships. The Los Angeles resident has had more than 20 solo exhibitions and participated in more than 100 group shows on three continents.

Birk, of Los Angeles, emphasizes social issues in contemporary life. He received a National Endowment for the Arts International Travel Grant to study mural painting in Mexico City in 1995 and a Fulbright Fellowship for painting in Rio de Janeiro in 1997. He was an artist-in-residence at the Smithsonian Institute in 2007 and at the Cité Internationale des Arts in Paris in 2008.

English, of New York, coined the term POPaganda to describe his colorful mash-ups of cultural touchstones.

Joyner, of San Francisco, is a former digital animator who has painted urban landscapes, Mexican masks, cartoon characters, robots and donuts.

Admission to the exhibit, which was curated by Jeff Phillips, is free. The gallery, located in William Rolland Stadium at 160 Overton Court on the Thousand Oaks campus, is open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. For information, call 805-493-3697 or visit www.callutheran.edu/rolland.